Bruce News July 2013

June ‘13

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Homecoming We were given a hero’s welcome by our friends and family here in Michigan last month. Check it out 1.

Pregnancy We’re on the home stretch! Baby Rye is scheduled to make a grand entrance next month. Details on 2.

Meanwhile… Back in the village our coworkers Mike and Sandy are holding down the fort and people still need to hear ……….. 2.

It’s been a smooth transition as we settle in to meet baby. You, our friends and family, have made our time here wonderful so far.

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We hit the ground running as we began the first month of our short maternity leave. A big highlight of our time so far was my sister Chelsea’s wedding, where we saw a lot of family and friends gather together to kick off Chelsea’s life with Kyle, the newest member of our family. Of course life has a way of throwing curve balls at you… Ric’s mom’s mom had to be life-flown to a medical facility in Texas to be treated for a stroke just a few days before the

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wedding. Thankfully, since a lot of our family already had time off to come for the wedding a lot of them were able to fly down to see Grandma. Unfortunately for Chelsea, it meant a lot of our family couldn’t make it to her wedding. Speaking of curve balls, what’s been going on in your life? During our time here in the states Sharon and I would like to get together with you and catch up. We’ve been encouraged while home as we attend summer studies at our

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home church. The men’s group is going through Ecclesiastes. Chapter 12 verse 1 says, “Remember your Creator in the days of your youth, before the days of trouble come and the years approach when you will say, ‘I find no pleasure in them.’” The interesting thing is that the verse promises trouble but it also ties two important ideas together: following God and happiness. If we remember our creator we will be able to celebrate even in days of trouble.

Bruce News July 2013

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Sharon and the baby continue to be healthy and complication-free. We’re past the real danger stage and the baby now weighs about 6 pounds! He’s a big boy. At our last ultrasound we saw rings of fat forming around his neck and face as well as his torso. When our Thai doctor told us our baby was big we assumed she was comparing our baby to Thai babies and that’s where the discrepancy came in. Nope. Our baby is big no matter how you look at him! Our stateside doctor assured us that she would much rather deal with a big baby than a baby that will not gain weight.

As we go through this incredible journey of having a baby we’re often reminded of how miraculous the entire process of birth is. It’s a metaphor for the Christian being born again into God’s kingdom and we’re reminded again of how important the work of church planting and evangelism currently being carried on by our team

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members Mike and Sandy. We are excited to finally begin our work among the Phu Thai and to see new believers born again.

Thank-you for standing with us. We feel your love and support and couldn’t do our job without you. As we settle back in here we’re looking to connect! We have some new contact information to share with you for the next few months:

Ric and Sharon Bruce 9981 Coleman Rd. Haslett, MI 48895

Sharon cell: (517)927-0846 Ric cell: (517)927-3314

You can still email us at ricandsharon@gmail.com

Love,

Ric and Sharon Bruce

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It’s all about the baby. Having a baby is like a full time job. Between the weekly baby classes, breastfeeding classes and checkups we spend our time at Baby’s R Us and Target registering or preparing the baby’s room.

Summer in Michigan

Ric with his niece Amelia. Sam and Kari are on their way to Indonesia next week! Pray with us for safety in travel and a good adjustment to new home.